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Greed and Lust - The Murder of Fabio Sementilli
44 Plays15 days ago
A beloved internationall star in the beauty and hair is murdered. Who would do such a thing. His family is devastated. Well, almost... One of them is leading a double life.
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Hearth, Home, and Homicide'
00:00:02
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Hello, listeners. Welcome. I'm Bridget.
00:00:05
Caroline
And I'm Caroline.
00:00:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You are listening to Hearth, Home, and Homicide, ah family production about family murders. Caroline and I research and narrate each story.
00:00:18
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Andy is our producer. Caroline and I try to figure out what is going on with the family at the center of the case. We know the ripple effect of family murder never ends.
00:00:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
We see how a killer in the family is responsible for immeasurable destruction and trauma. And we try to understand all of that.
00:00:42
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So listener discretion is advised.
The Murder of Fabio Cimentilli
00:00:46
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So Caroline, today we're going to be talking about greed and we're going to be talking about lust and killing, the killing of Fabio Cimentilli.
00:00:57
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
We're traveling to the ritzy fantasy neighborhood, my word for it, because it would be like, that would be unreal, neighborhood known as Woodland Hills in Los Angeles.
00:01:10
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
It's up there. It's it's it's ritzy. I know that sounds like I'm just such a... Yes.
00:01:17
Caroline
No, I think I agree because I think for you and I, we're simple Northwest coasters. And so that's a little bit of a different type of um ritzy.
00:01:23
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes.
00:01:27
Caroline
Let's be real. Like when we think of Ritz, it's probably more of a New York City type thing. But we do look to Los Angeles because of the movie stars and the fame, and the mansions.
00:01:35
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes, putting on the Ritz.
00:01:38
Caroline
Yeah, that's kind of what I picture too. would do a tour of LA upscale neighborhoods. I feel like that's a thing you can do.
00:01:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah, I guess, might be down on my list though.
Fabio's Background and Family Life
00:01:49
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Anyway, this this whole story tells us tells us about, it's a story of murder, but it's also a story story of money.
00:02:02
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And ah there's just more of it in Los Angeles than I think anywhere. Because our victim today is a really good guy. I really want to talk about him. He's a self-made man named Fabio Simentelli, who came from humble roots and never forgot it.
00:02:20
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was a grateful family man. was Always made it clear that in his words, I don't deserve anything that's happening to me. This is just so great. I just, oh oh my God, how did I ever get here?
00:02:34
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was very humble in that way and it was sincere. He had a wife, Monica Simentelli. They had children together. Their kids were ah big part of Fabio's life, and he often spoke about how much he loved them.
00:02:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio and Monica were married for many years, and they seemed happy. They had three children, Luigi Cimentelli, Jessica Cimentelli, and Morella Cimentelli.
00:03:03
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Their family was so very close. Fabio enjoyed spending time with them whenever possible. But this wife, this Monica Simentelli, she was a killer, a greedy, lustful killer.
00:03:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And she took everything away from her husband, Fabio, and her children. And I wonder how she got so far as to have her husband assassinated when their life was a storybook life.
00:03:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
what?
Monica's Role and Motivation
00:03:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So let's dive in, see what happened to this amazing family. Mine is Monica, of course.
00:03:44
Caroline
Oh,
00:03:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And you know, ah this happened eight years ago.
00:03:51
Caroline
ah wow
00:03:51
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
in 2017 however she monica only recently i mean within the last few weeks has been found guilty by a jury of her peers and we usually go back a ways but this is fresh so a lot of our listeners you already know some of the story if you followed um the killing of fabio simantilli so let's talk about fabio Fabio Cimentelli was born in Italy, where he developed an early passion for hairstyling.
00:04:27
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
His love for beauty and hair was more than just an interest. He would he was beauty and hair, that up close and personal way he had to do with others who could not do what he did with other people's hair.
00:04:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, it was a gift. It's such a specific gift, too.
00:04:49
Caroline
it's a craft for sure and definitely not everyone can do it
00:04:52
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
No, no. He won a lot of contests. and I mean, you know, he was very competitive, but not in a gritty sort of way. He was just, you know, this was his this was his thing.
00:05:00
Caroline
just he had it yeah yeah
00:05:05
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio's family, his entire family, his parents and siblings moved to Toronto, Canada for economic reasons, wanting to give more for their children and their family.
00:05:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
As Fabio grew older, he wanted to pursue his dreams of being a world-famous hairstylist. And he did. He won international contests for hairdressing and various aspects of the beauty arts, the art of beauty.
00:05:36
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
um He and his sister
Fabio's Career and Monica's Discontent
00:05:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
opened a shop in Toronto, and once they opened their own salon, it was like, Bam! that They hit it off like crazy.
00:05:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Their shop was a mecca for both the gifts of Fabio and his sister, but also a vibe, a certain vibe. Like, we're so happy.
00:05:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And let me see what we can do. Oh, my God, that's magic. Oh, that's what we do. We're magic. It was full of joy, full of love for every customer who felt the love and appreciation for their unique beauty.
00:06:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was very, very good at that. All Fabio had to do was be himself, and he was a gifted and appreciated artist. His reputation grew like wildfire all over the globe, essentially.
00:06:30
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He married and had a son, but the marriage wasn't working.
00:06:34
Caroline
Thank you.
00:06:35
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Meanwhile, one of Fabio's ongoing clients was flirting with him, and he flirted back. And ah she this is Monica we're talking about, and she she modeled for him quite a bit. So she kind of got involved and entrenched in the whole scene.
00:06:55
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He divorced his wife and eventually married this magnetic, gorgeous, vivacious beauty named Monica. And she was all that. Soon there were two beautiful daughters for Monica and Fabio, along with Fabio's son from his first marriage.
00:07:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And then the unbelievable happened. Fabio got an offer by one of the most influential brands in beauty to come to California and head up, as in be the vice president of education, for the brand Wella in Los Angeles.
00:07:37
Caroline
oh
00:07:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Caroline, it's almost like, just imagine, I get a telephone call today. Bridget, can you come to California and head up the greatest grandmothers ever corporation, and you will be the teacher for budding grandmothers and so forth and so on. Can you imagine I would just be getting on that plane? Believe me.
00:08:03
Caroline
Yeah, that's a pretty big accolade.
00:08:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Here's how much we're going to pay you. oh my God.
00:08:05
Caroline
Yeah.
00:08:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I would run to the airport for that.
00:08:09
Caroline
yeah
00:08:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He would be teaching. He would be consulting. he would He would dress the hairstyles of the elite of Los Angeles, both the wealthy and well and the famous.
00:08:25
Caroline
Yeah.
00:08:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He became the hairdresser to the stars.
00:08:29
Caroline
Which is a very like niche, cool seeming place to be because you're incognito in some of the most glamorous looking and glamorous feeling and just over the top eccentric places.
00:08:46
Caroline
I mean, I think that California is fun tro extremely because of all of this diversity and like wow factor stuff. Plus, it's sunny and beautiful. And so for someone in the beauty industry, I could just imagine, like, this is just the top of the mountain.
00:09:03
Caroline
You know what I mean?
00:09:03
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
It'd be like getting your own island. I mean, you know, really.
00:09:05
Caroline
Oh, yeah.
00:09:08
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He wanted to give his family a storybook life, not just because he loved them, but because he felt like he was in a storybook life.
00:09:16
Caroline
oh yeah
00:09:16
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And he wanted them to have all of that. He loved his life. He had a saying. he would tell people, no matter what happens to you along the way, at some point, you just have to say, hey, I have dreams.
00:09:34
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I'm going to climb that mountain.
00:09:37
Caroline
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
00:09:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was very inspirational to innumerable students, colleagues, neighbors, friends. I mean, he was really remarkable.
00:09:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And he had that one center to him, which was climb the mountain.
00:09:54
Caroline
yeah
00:09:55
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Whatever your mountain is that you want to climb, climb it.
00:09:58
Caroline
yeah
00:09:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Don't put it off. Fabio, Monica, Luigi, Jessica, Mirella, they all settled in a gorgeous home in Southern California, specifically in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, when his career took off the way he did. So yes, he did move from Toronto.
00:10:19
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He flew back to Toronto on a regular basis because he had friends back there.
00:10:24
Caroline
Yeah.
00:10:24
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He had, you know, his family was back there.
00:10:27
Caroline
Yeah. We love Canada.
00:10:28
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So, I mean, you know, he just, he was just, and he would just say it all the time. I don't know how I got this lucky.
00:10:36
Caroline
Yeah.
00:10:36
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I, you know, and it but he was busy paying it forward. He really was.
00:10:40
Caroline
Well, and it's sort of a little along the lines of do something you love and you're never working a day in your life. This encompasses what people are meaning when they say that.
00:10:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Absolutely. Absolutely.
00:10:48
Caroline
He had this passion. He was following. It just so happens that there there this was a huge opportunity for him to be extremely successful monetarily as well as with this craft.
00:11:02
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes, exactly. he He's just climbing that mountain.
00:11:07
Caroline
He's climbing that mountain. That's right.
00:11:08
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah, yeah. Over the years, Fabio became more and more famous for his work with some of Hollywood's biggest stars. He had many celebrity clients who trusted him with their hair, probably their life story too.
00:11:25
Caroline
Oh, yeah. Yeah.
00:11:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
His talent and friendly personality made him a favorite in the industry. He was known for being a true artist in hairstyling, beauty, which earned him recognition and respect from everyone he worked with.
00:11:41
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was loving, kind, and generous. I did not read any articles about him being, but there was just this one problem. He was a drinker. He was a drug addict.
00:11:52
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
None of that.
00:11:53
Caroline
yeah
00:11:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
No. He was just a full-of-life mountain climber with dreams, and he brought a lot of people with him on the way.
00:12:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio was also known for his role in education in the beauty world. He worked as an educator at Wella Professionals. where he taught other hairstylists the tricks of the trade.
00:12:20
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And he was not someone who kept secrets about that. Here's, yeah let me give you some feedback.
00:12:27
Caroline
they call it The kids call it gatekeeping now. Doesn't gatekeep on those so um expert tips and tricks?
00:12:34
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I love that.
00:12:34
Caroline
Passes them out. I know, me too.
00:12:36
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
i love that. All of a sudden, I've shaved 20 years off my life because I now can I know that about that the modern culture.
00:12:46
Caroline
It's called gatekeeping now.
00:12:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah, I love it. His work with Wella and other companies helped many hairstylists improve their skills and get better at their jobs, helped to them make more money, helped them, ah you know, be successful in running a business, which helps us all taxpayers, you know.
00:12:59
Caroline
yeah you Right. What?
00:13:04
Caroline
what
00:13:06
Caroline
Well, and this is how you know it's a passion because he he actually gains more than he ever could out of money by having a community of people be at their absolute best.
00:13:17
Caroline
I mean, that I'm getting inspired just by hearing his story, quite frankly.
00:13:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I know I got inspired about this story too. And i wanted to be closer to him.
00:13:24
Caroline
Yeah.
00:13:28
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I wish I knew him. And I do feel closer to him.
00:13:29
Caroline
Yeah.
00:13:32
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio mentored many. If he were still alive, he would mentor us.
The Affair and Murder Plot
00:13:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And he shared his knowledge freely with those who wanted to learn. So this is ah this is the real meal deal, listeners.
00:13:45
Caroline
Yeah.
00:13:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, he really is a unique individual. He did not appear to have a single dark thought, which is a miracle.
00:13:56
Caroline
Right.
00:13:57
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So anyway...
00:13:57
Caroline
Or like, or, or ah resentment towards something or a thorn in the heel. There's nothing there. I mean, this is a life is beautiful guy.
00:14:05
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
No, no, life is beautiful.
00:14:07
Caroline
This is just, just everything is worth it because this is great. Yeah.
00:14:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
if he If he had, if if you asked Monica what was wrong with him, she was probably not able to identify it, but she probably wanted him to ah put her in the spotlight.
00:14:15
Caroline
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
00:14:26
Caroline
o
00:14:27
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But she was not the spotlight, he was.
00:14:27
Caroline
yeah
00:14:30
Caroline
yeah
00:14:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And I'm thinking she maybe didn't like that. So remember, Monica, his wife, is going to kill him. So who is Monica?
00:14:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, Monica Simentelli's name burst into global headlines due to her involvement in the shocking and tragic murder case, the killing of her husband, renowned hairstylist and well-executive,
00:14:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio Simentelli. There was nothing in her background, career, family life that would cause friends and family to think that she could be the mastermind of the disturbing events that led to her conviction just a couple of weeks ago for conspiracy to commit murder and first degree murder.
00:15:09
Caroline
Okay.
00:15:23
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So when you're charged with a conspiracy to commit murder, you get charged for that, and then you get charged for the actual murder.
00:15:32
Caroline
okay
00:15:33
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So suppose she had conspired to kill him but didn't succeed. She's still going to stand on trial for a conspiracy to commit murder.
00:15:40
Caroline
for the inspiring yeah she can't even think about it don't even try it
00:15:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And, yeah, yeah. Don't even think about it, no.
00:15:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
How about you get dressed, put yourself in an automobile, yours or somebody else's, and get the hell out of Dodge? That's what you do.
00:15:58
Caroline
yeah right that is yeah that's true
00:15:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
That's what you do. You don't be killing people. So born as Monica Maria Marquez, Monica's roots trace back to a modest upbringing in a well-regarded Italian family, though not much is publicly documented about her early life, so she didn't get into any major trouble.
00:16:18
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Court proceedings or interviews shed on her formative years. There was just nothing there. She grew up. She was born. She grew up. That's what we know.
00:16:26
Caroline
that's why That's what life before the internet was like. Oh, bliss.
00:16:30
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah. Her family of origin was a traditional one, as I said, and she was seen by all as a very attractive, likable, traditional child, teen and adult.
00:16:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, just the traditions of, you know, hearth, home and not the homicide part.
00:16:48
Caroline
right now
00:16:51
Caroline
You see how the title came about, though.
00:16:52
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah. She modeled for Fabio in Toronto. And he, at the same time, was this larger-than-life, beloved character in the hair and beauty business. And she enjoyed being a part of that.
00:17:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So I imagine that, you know, when he was having, he was engaged in international contests and winning them, she might have been his subject. But she was also his model when it came to shows that he would do and things like that.
00:17:22
Caroline
I could see that as a very intoxicating lifestyle.
00:17:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Oh.
00:17:25
Caroline
I'm thinking back to the 90s, the supermodels. They did a lot of emphasis on it. Like nobody really knew what a supermodel lifestyle was like, but then we got behind the scenes through MTV and that looked very intoxicating.
00:17:37
Caroline
But we you know we later learned it was quite dangerous.
00:17:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Mm-hmm.
00:17:40
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
ah Well, it can be, yes. Well, like, for example, Cartholm and Homicide were, you know, i she she was at the end part of the homicide part.
00:17:50
Caroline
ah Yeah.
00:17:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So I don't know.
00:17:50
Caroline
Yeah.
00:17:52
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
All of this is taking place, all of this romance that's starting to develop between her and Fabio, Monica and Fabio, that was all taking place in Toronto. then They're not in their storybook life yet.
00:18:07
Caroline
okay
00:18:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, I take that back. They're in a storybook life, but a smaller town.
00:18:12
Caroline
yeah
00:18:12
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You know, smaller, not as fancy. But remember, he was internationally known by then.
00:18:19
Caroline
Right. So.
00:18:20
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So people were flying to Toronto from other places to have their hairstyle by him.
00:18:25
Caroline
Yeah.
00:18:29
Caroline
I feel like Canada's, you know, we're all sleeping on the cool stuff that Canada's been doing for a while now.
00:18:29
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So rich people.
00:18:34
Caroline
Cause you know, you and I are close to the Vancouver side and it's like, they've always been doing cool stuff just right under our noses.
00:18:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Oh, yeah. Yeah.
00:18:42
Caroline
Yeah.
00:18:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah. Over time, she and Fabio grew closer and closer, and as his marriage was failing, he realized that he really wanted to be with Monica, even though Fabio was a
00:18:55
Caroline
Yeah.
Conspiracy and Manipulation
00:18:57
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
superstar in his field, and Monica was very much a local beauty artist.
00:19:02
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
who was flirting with him, and but he he fell in love with her, and she was in love with him. So, you know, there you go. You're off to the races now.
00:19:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So nobody ever saw Monica as a marriage buster. The marriage that he was in at the time, you know, it wasn't doing so well.
00:19:26
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So I don't think he necessarily married her as a rebound. I think that one relationship was faltering and dying and the other relationship was blossoming and growing and Fabio didn't appear in anything that I read about him or ah any kind of documentaries about him that he was playing the field or really i mean he was very family oriented very family oriented he owned his business with his sister
00:19:39
Caroline
Right.
00:19:54
Caroline
Yeah. was probably pretty busy. Right. I mean, he's probably really busy and he's just got a focus. and But that makes sense that as he's, you know, he's got this first sort of fairy tale life of a marriage to son.
00:20:09
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes.
00:20:10
Caroline
But then everything is taking on a different turn and not in a bad way. Just in a, like you said, it's a new, it's a different life now taking off. And this previous life is not necessarily going to always just realign itself with your new you know, sometimes it just stops and then something new comes along.
00:20:32
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, and he was still young. i mean, and so was Monica.
00:20:37
Caroline
Yeah.
00:20:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And um people change over the years, whether you're married or not.
00:20:44
Caroline
Right.
00:20:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Your goals are going to change, your your um interests, your your circle of friends.
00:20:45
Caroline
That's true.
00:20:52
Caroline
Yeah.
00:20:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But it's true that Monica, you know, she wasn't seen as a marriage buster. they Everyone who knew her saw her as a beautiful, lively, playful.
00:21:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And then after they got married, she was devoted to Fabio and the daughters they brought to life in the picture-perfect family. And she played the part, running a model family in the spotlight of L.A.
00:21:19
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So she did all that. And if you were to ask monna Monica, she did everything twenty four seven to make Fabio the top of his public image.
00:21:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So she took care of everything related to his private life, scheduling,
00:21:35
Caroline
Yeah.
00:21:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
handled a lot of the money issues.
00:21:41
Caroline
Yeah.
00:21:41
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was doing all that for her or she was doing all that for him and um she really enjoyed it.
00:21:49
Caroline
Nice. Well, I mean, that sounds like ah a good team, right?
00:21:49
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So I'm, I'm, I, they were a very good team, very good team.
00:21:51
Caroline
A good, yeah.
00:21:55
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I think if she had her wishes, Maybe she grew tired of him always being in the spotlight.
00:22:05
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, what about me?
00:22:06
Caroline
Yeah.
00:22:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I'm that i'm in the dark behind the stage, you know, making you look good. So maybe there was some of that, but it never came to the surface.
00:22:13
Caroline
yeah
00:22:18
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I don't think, well, yeah, it did come to the surface or we wouldn't be talking about his murder. I don't think Fabio needed a public image backstage team, though. Fabio Cimentelli was himself in his life, and he stated hundreds of times how he has no idea i could be how he could be so lucky.
00:22:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was revered and loved in life, and it was ah authentic. It was authentic. Monica was great at cultivating a perfect family for her own reasons, whatever they may be.
00:22:54
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And I'm not saying she was murderous every minute of her life with Fabio. It's just that I do think she wanted his attention and the attention of others. L.A., you know, just screams, you're either a somebody or you're nobody.
00:23:12
Caroline
Yeah, actually, that's a good. There are a lot of different shows you can watch on it, but you're right. Like there's it's a place where if you're starved for attention and not getting it, that can really hurt you. And it is a place that maybe if you didn't think you were starved for attention and you get there, maybe suddenly you start to become starved for attention.
00:23:21
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes.
00:23:26
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
00:23:27
Caroline
I mean, it's just it's thing.
00:23:28
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
00:23:29
Caroline
It's a it's an electric place like any other big city.
00:23:32
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
right You know, here we are in the Washington state, ah ah west side of the mountains, and there's a great deal of permission to dress like a wood chopper or a farmer.
00:23:46
Caroline
Lumberjack.
00:23:47
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
or you you You do you. If you want to dress up like a fairy, you can do that.
00:23:50
Caroline
Yeah. A hippie. It's true.
00:23:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, and it's just the best.
00:23:55
Caroline
It's great.
00:23:56
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
One of the things I love about where I live is that there's no dress code.
00:24:01
Caroline
Nut. Yeah.
00:24:02
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
If I lived, well, I don't know, Caroline.
00:24:02
Caroline
Well, you have to wear clothes. That is a prerequisite. Touche.
00:24:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I don't know. Some of the stuff I see around here.
00:24:08
Caroline
Touche.
00:24:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But anyway, my point is that if I lived in l L.A., i would have to move because there would be so much pressure to dress a certain way.
00:24:21
Caroline
Yeah, that's a good point. Yeah.
00:24:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
i mean, there's a dress code in Los Angeles, and it's like, you know, you look poor.
00:24:28
Caroline
Yeah, all the up-ing too.
00:24:28
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You need a new wardrobe. Yeah.
00:24:30
Caroline
Because it's not just about the clothes. In order for the clothes to look right, you sometimes have to make some adjustments to your body too. I just don't know.
00:24:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Oh, yeah.
00:24:38
Caroline
It starts to stack.
00:24:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, that good luck with that, Bridget. So anyway, I'm not saying that she was a natural born killer. I just think that she wanted attention.
00:24:48
Caroline
Yeah.
00:24:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio was who he was. He was a living icon in the beauty business. And maybe Monica grew to need the attention of a doting male hero type person.
00:25:00
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
who would let her be the center of attention all the time. And the problem is, Caroline, she found just such a person, and he was so perfect.
00:25:15
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
How do I know that? Because he would kill for her.
00:25:21
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So who was this killer?
00:25:26
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
First off, no surprise, he was Monica's secret lover.
00:25:32
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Monica was living two lives at the time of a... ah She was living with a former porn star, that's who she was in love with, turned racquetball instructor, which is how she met him, and the two of them together viciously murdered Fabio Simantilli in cold blood.
00:25:55
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
They ambushed and killed him by stabbing him in his major arteries while he was in his favorite place, home. He was outside by the pool where he could read.
00:26:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He always went there to reflect, to relax, smoke his cigar, and feel a sense of relaxation and safety. So she fell all right.
00:26:24
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She fell out of her mind as well as beyond anything that anyone could ever imagine. And again, the guy that she selected was her racquetball instructor who used to be ah porn star.
00:26:39
Caroline
oh I was going to say that's got to be just so like trite and just, I mean, nice right out of 1980s, you're going to your country club and you're going to pick up on the cabana boy or like the tennis instructor.
00:26:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Eww.
00:26:56
Caroline
I mean, we've seen the script.
00:26:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
someone Someone, you know, probably anyone would do, you know.
00:27:02
Caroline
Yeah, right.
00:27:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She just wanted attention and she wanted to be fond on and fond upon or whatever the verb is there that she...
00:27:06
Caroline
Yeah.
00:27:11
Caroline
Yes.
00:27:14
Caroline
To feel like the priority, like the obsession.
00:27:16
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She wanted to feel like the priority. And she was married to someone who deeply loved his family, including her, but that was not enough.
00:27:18
Caroline
Yeah.
00:27:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She wanted everything that she had plus she wanted her porn star.
00:27:34
Caroline
Yeah.
00:27:36
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
that That's just kind of the book jacket version of what's going on here.
00:27:37
Caroline
I just.
00:27:42
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And, you know, was she a good mother? I'm going to say she probably played one and imitated one, and she probably did it for a long time.
00:27:48
Caroline
There you go Yeah.
00:27:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But no, she's not a good mother, because as we're going to find out, they not only did she take the father away, but she sort of got her children involved, and I'm going to explain why.
00:27:55
Caroline
Right. She took the father away. i mean.
00:28:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
They were clueless, but she she did.
00:28:08
Caroline
Yeah.
00:28:09
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She used them as pawns.
00:28:10
Caroline
true you're right about that actually I didn't really think about that too hard but now that you're saying that I'm thinking yeah actually pretty cruel and cold and twisted really
00:28:20
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She either was that low or became that low, but that's low.
00:28:24
Caroline
yes I agree
00:28:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
That's low. So let's talk about the commit conspiracy to commit murder. Here's how the press covered the case once the killers were caught.
00:28:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
They printed out on January 23rd, 2017, the beauty industry was rocked by the tragic news of Fabio Simentelli's murder.
00:28:51
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio was found at his Woodland Hills home in Los Angeles, having suffered multiple stab wounds. The shocking and brutal nature of his death left his family, his friends, his colleagues in profound grief and disbelief.
00:29:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio's murder was a devastating blow to to those who knew him and the wider beauty community that respected and admired his work.
00:29:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So I'm not saying that he was um at the, who was, what is the name of that guy who was really big in the fashion industry and then he was killed on the Versace, Versace, yes.
00:29:37
Caroline
there Wasn't it Versace? Yeah. Yes.
00:29:41
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So he was like a Versace, but not in clothes. It was more hair, a hair Versace.
00:29:46
Caroline
Yes. That's what I thought, too.
00:29:47
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes.
00:29:48
Caroline
Or I told you about the House of Gucci, that movie I saw where the first wife is.
00:29:51
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes.
00:29:52
Caroline
like You know, this. Yeah, it kind of rings in that vein where it's this. High profile figure and there's some jealous something.
00:29:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes.
00:30:00
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah.
00:30:01
Caroline
Yeah.
00:30:01
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I think that, care I think that hairstyles, ah are not given their due as the art form that clothing is.
00:30:10
Caroline
Oh, 100%. That's, yeah. 100%.
00:30:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And so that's the only difference between him and Versace.
00:30:17
Caroline
Hmm.
00:30:20
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
The investigation into the murder revealed that Fabio's wife, Monica Cimentilli, and her lover, porn star Robert Baker, were involved in plotting the murder.
00:30:35
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
The motive was reportedly linked to financial gain, including life insurance policies. The case was widely covered in the media, but adding to the tragedy of his untimely death.
00:30:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So now we're going to have to talk about the porn star turned racquetball.
00:30:53
Caroline
Yeah, I think so. Yeah. Mm-hmm.
00:30:56
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
oh He also, I think, produced some form ah porn stars ah material. What is that called? Pornography? that what that is?
00:31:06
Caroline
yeah
00:31:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah, okay.
00:31:07
Caroline
i think so
00:31:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So but movies, XX rated movies.
00:31:09
Caroline
yeah
00:31:12
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He became a producer of sorts. I don't know what that... He just, you know, he was a porn star, former porn star, who now decided to be a racquetball coach to the stars.
00:31:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And he was.
00:31:25
Caroline
Yeah.
00:31:26
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Okay. So his name was Robert Baker.
00:31:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
As I already hinted at, Robert Baker, 61 at the time of the murder, was a former porn star turned racquetball instructor... turned lover of a very wealthy wife and mother in Los Angeles, Monica Simentilli.
00:31:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And she wanted to be with him. and so that meant Fabio Simentilli had to die. Really? you would get half of your marital assets.
00:31:57
Caroline
right
00:31:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So why not divorce?
00:32:01
Caroline
why Yes. Why not divorce?
00:32:03
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah.
00:32:04
Caroline
why
00:32:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Why not divorce?
00:32:05
Caroline
yeah It's just like a death. So just choose that one.
00:32:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, there's grief no matter what happens over a lifetime.
00:32:13
Caroline
Oh,
00:32:15
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
you know, when you lose things, when you your dreams don't come true, there's a there's a you know there's a lot of grief and on the human spectrum of experience on planet Earth.
00:32:22
Caroline
oh yeah.
00:32:27
Caroline
hundred percent yeah
00:32:29
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But she was not going to be happy with half. You know, Fabio at the time of his death was worth about $10 million. dollars
00:32:37
Caroline
You know, and I bet you that man would have given it all away and just started fresh if he felt like that's what needed to happen. Do you know what I mean? I don't ever get the sense that he ever...
00:32:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You're right about that. You're absolutely right about that.
00:32:47
Caroline
He he was always constructing a safe space to be his creative self in this vein of hair and beauty. The money was extra. The stars were extra. That was just him. You know, he just was like, dang, I can't believe it's like this. Great.
00:33:01
Caroline
He was always going to be doing it on this. You know what i mean?
00:33:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You're right. He's always ban from what I can find anything about him, just a gracious individual.
00:33:16
Caroline
Yeah, I don't.
00:33:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And and he he was humble about his stardom.
00:33:24
Caroline
Yeah.
00:33:24
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was humble about his luck
00:33:28
Caroline
Yeah.
00:33:29
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He just felt blessed, and he made that very clear.
00:33:31
Caroline
Yeah.
00:33:33
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He would probably thank her for the good years and say, here's the key to the house.
00:33:36
Caroline
like Right. Here's everything. I'll just go start over down the road.
00:33:40
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And half of my, here's what you will get. I mean, I don't know what he would do because he didn't get that chance.
00:33:45
Caroline
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
00:33:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Because Monica wanted to have the status that Fabio reflected onto her.
00:33:55
Caroline
Mm-hmm.
00:33:56
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She didn't want to give up being his wife.
00:33:58
Caroline
Yeah.
00:33:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And she wanted all the money and she wanted her porn star, Robert Baker.
00:34:07
Caroline
That sounds like a made up name. Robert Bobby Baker.
00:34:09
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Robert Baker.
00:34:11
Caroline
or Or like ah I don't know. Anyway, i don't want to leave track.
00:34:13
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
a pseudonym. His stage name probably wasn't Robert Baker, Caroline. His stage name was probably something involving Colossal, Magnanimous, Unbelievable,
00:34:27
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
um something like that. So she would kill for Baker. She would kill for him, the porn star, only he was the one who had to do the killing.
00:34:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So now we see Monica in a light.
00:34:48
Caroline
Yeah.
00:34:49
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She doesn't want to get her hands dirty.
00:34:52
Caroline
Yeah, a little bit more manipulative, Monica. who
00:34:55
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah, yeah. Yeah, she's she's she knows how to... finagle things so that she will be the white dove flying over anything that bad that happened.
00:35:09
Caroline
Right.
00:35:10
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You know. ah The text messages that Monica and Robert sent to one another leading up to the murder numbered in the tens of thousands going both ways.
00:35:16
Caroline
Yeah.
Suspicion and Investigation
00:35:25
Caroline
yeah
00:35:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
This is just, number one, okay, so you're a teenager now.
00:35:30
Caroline
i I don't understand the obsession with like, I just don't. I checked out probably around like 2007. I mean, you guys have to understand, even though I got a smartphone, I'm still thinking the Nokia Razor Edge is the number one gift this Christmas. Like, I'm trapped at a different time.
00:35:51
Caroline
So what I just don't understand this
00:35:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
What is a Nokia? What is that?
00:35:59
Caroline
the Nokia Razor Edge. It was the flip phone that was super popular like in like 2008. It was the gift to get into the...
00:36:05
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Oh, oh, I thought you meant, I thought you meant a razor to like shave your legs or something.
00:36:11
Caroline
No, no. It was like a flip phone.
00:36:12
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
No, okay.
00:36:13
Caroline
It was like the...
00:36:13
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Hey man, there went my Christmas list.
00:36:13
Caroline
up
00:36:15
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I was going to get you.
00:36:15
Caroline
I know. Well, but that's what I'm saying is like, I just don't get the obsession with ah writing everything down, taking pictures of yourself. so Stop it. There's so much joy in anonymity and recollections that are really unclear. Like there's so much But...
00:36:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
and safety, but no, they're writing each other multiple hundreds of texts over this time, and they're like teenagers now.
00:36:34
Caroline
but
00:36:47
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
That tells me that both of their minds had reverted to approximately, I'm gonna give them the credit that they may be due maybe do, maybe 16, I think it's more like 13, you know thirteen
00:36:58
Caroline
fourteen Yeah.
00:37:00
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
and And they're acting like they're having sex for the first time.
00:37:03
Caroline
yeah Which I do think there's science behind that with the chemicals and endorphins involved in all of this type of psychological and physical interaction. i do think that that actually does happen a little bit.
00:37:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right. She was in her late 40s. Fabio was 49 when he died. Robert's 61.
00:37:23
Caroline
Geez.
00:37:24
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So now he knows probably more about weird stuff sexually than anybody on the planet because
00:37:31
Caroline
don't
00:37:37
Caroline
i don't know. The internet's around. He's a porn star, though.
00:37:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I don't know.
00:37:40
Caroline
You're right.
00:37:41
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
i just don't, what this is this part, the Hollywood part, I can imagine this part. I'm like, where is your brain? Is this a part of your brain?
00:37:50
Caroline
Yeah.
00:37:52
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
It's fallen out of your head. um the text messages that I think I've already told you, tens of thousands going both ways.
00:38:02
Caroline
Yeah, point.
00:38:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Their mind is, you know, toddlerhood. I don't know. say were They were both in a selfish bubble. that's the but That's the only way I know how to describe it.
00:38:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And when you're in a bubble like that, other people don't matter. And there is no such thing as getting caught, prosecuted, or imprisoned for life.
00:38:30
Caroline
yeah
00:38:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
that's That's not in your bubble.
00:38:31
Caroline
good point
00:38:34
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Murder's in your bubble.
00:38:35
Caroline
Yeah.
00:38:36
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But not divorce.
00:38:40
Caroline
yeah
00:38:40
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You're just skipping right over that possibility. Because in the bubble, you believe your own lies. That you tell yourself. Now, Carolina, I have to admit something.
00:38:52
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I can spot it because I got it, sort of. I think we probably are all capable of entering into a la-la land.
00:39:02
Caroline
so yeah
00:39:03
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
a self-deceiving place. I mean, speaking for myself, I'll give you a good example because it probably just happened an hour or two ago.
00:39:11
Caroline
Yeah.
00:39:12
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I can convince myself that I'm still on the Weight Watchers program, even if I have just eaten 10 pounds of strawberries with a gallon of reduced fat ice cream.
00:39:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Because I was strong and not, I did not eat the M&Ms also.
00:39:30
Caroline
Oh, yeah. They did studies on this actually after the ah the Great Recession, the 2008 bubble burst or whatever, the you know, all that.
00:39:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Mm hmm.
00:39:39
Caroline
Because you had a large amount of people taking their own lives or doing, that you know, in the lives of their family members and things like that because of how bad they felt like they had gotten.
00:39:46
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah.
00:39:49
Caroline
But they what they did was, that it was an article I read, but they did the study on how your brain just ah slowly over time, you you stretch your line until suddenly you turn around.
00:39:49
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Mm hmm.
00:39:59
Caroline
You don't even remember where you used to be. You can't even see what your original home of value system was. You are so far down down the road in this place where you have no values, no morals, no thresholds.
00:40:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right. Yeah.
00:40:13
Caroline
You're just behaving like a crazy criminal. Right.
00:40:16
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I used to, way back, I used to love M&M's so much, I would eat them in the bathtub, and then the next day I would be horrified to see that there were all these colors at the bottom of my bathtub, and that meant that everybody in my family knew what I was doing in there.
00:40:36
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So, yeah, yeah, you you there's no such thing as living without a trace.
00:40:43
Caroline
Yes, it's true.
00:40:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
No such thing.
00:40:45
Caroline
Or accountability, let's say. There's always going to be accountability, even for the good stuff.
00:40:46
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
00:40:49
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right. Now, in this murder, this murder bubble, I'm in the Weight Watcher bubble, but i this is a murder bubble.
00:40:59
Caroline
Mm-hmm.
00:41:00
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Robert did the planning, and Monica told him everything he needed to know. For example, she divulged where were the security cameras hooked up? Where were the cameras hooked up?
00:41:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Where were the locks? Uh, where were, when will so-and-so be home? When will he be home? What will he be doing when he comes home?
00:41:24
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Where will he be? And when would the girls be home, each one of them? And when would they not be home?
00:41:35
Caroline
Ah,
00:41:35
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And I mean, they just, They just had a lot of sex and a lot of talking about how to murder. And Robert was the one who did the planning and Monica was the one who filled in the blanks for the killers.
00:41:52
Caroline
it's cold. It's diabolically cold.
00:41:54
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Cold, cold. Robert did something really bad. And he asked a friend of his to help him kill Fabio.
00:42:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Now, why do I say that Robert did something really bad here?
00:42:08
Caroline
Yeah.
00:42:12
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
This was really bad. Because his accomplice was a ah guy, Christopher Austin, who was a parole officer in Oregon,
00:42:28
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
who never had anything so much as a speeding ticket, but he was a friend of Robert. Maybe Robert helped him out a time or two.
00:42:37
Caroline
yeah
00:42:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Not to say he was an angel. i mean, Robert Baker was a close friend, and Christopher needed the money because he needed money because he had a new family.
00:42:50
Caroline
Yeah. Oh,
00:42:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He had a new family. He's a family man. And Robert told him, look, I need your help. I have to kill somebody, but I can't do it alone because he's big.
00:43:03
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He's a big guy.
00:43:04
Caroline
my God.
00:43:05
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And Robert was kind of puny by my standards.
00:43:09
Caroline
Well, he had that porn body.
00:43:10
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Just puny, yeah. He had a porn star body. 90% of it was not in his height, his actual toe to head.
00:43:18
Caroline
Right.
00:43:21
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I need to stop talking about it because everything is a tongue-in-cheek joke on pornography, I guess, anyway. In fact, it was Christopher Austin's plane ride from Oregon to Los Angeles the day of the murder that helped police catch Robert and Monica as chief conspirators.
00:43:41
Caroline
Well, yay. No.
00:43:42
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes. So Christopher, you know, I mean, I have friends. I have friends who have done me favors. If one of them contacted me and said, hey, look, I've done you some propers. Now I need you to help me kill somebody.
00:43:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I'm not going to say yes. But Christopher said, okay.
00:44:00
Caroline
no I just, you know, that's a call I know i hope I never get. But you're I'm with you. I'm looking for ways to say no. And probably working pretty close to reporting you.
00:44:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, that is what you should do, Caroline.
00:44:16
Caroline
I know, but you know, circumstance.
00:44:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
To save a life.
00:44:17
Caroline
i don't what's going my way.
00:44:18
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah, to save a life. So here I want to talk a little bit about how Monica and porn star Robert ah got caught.
00:44:32
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Because, you know, they did a lot of planning. And how could they possibly be caught?
00:44:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And these two killers did get their deniability bubbles busted. So how did that happen? And, you know, Monica, she was only recently brought to trial.
00:44:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And when you should have seen the look on her face when the jury came back guilty, she was shocked out of her shoes.
00:44:57
Caroline
Really?
00:45:00
Caroline
Even though there's text messages and everything, like people, people, okay, I'm just flabbergasted.
00:45:00
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, she, oh God, it's a bubble, honey. It's a bubble. It's a bubble. it's a bubble
00:45:07
Caroline
There you go. Yeah.
00:45:08
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You can't think straight when you're in the bubble.
00:45:12
Caroline
Yeah.
00:45:15
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, you know, I laugh about my bubble. You have bubbles. We all have bubbles.
00:45:20
Caroline
Yeah.
00:45:20
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
We don't see the truth. We don't want to see the truth.
00:45:23
Caroline
Right.
00:45:23
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
If we do see it, we're mad about it. and ah But then we continue to, it's not that bad.
00:45:30
Caroline
act as if yes oh my god yes so true
00:45:30
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, everybody's got that. Everybody, everybody, everybody. At the funeral for Fabio, his grieving widow was putting on an amazing show.
00:45:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Just drenched in tears, the love of my life, a storybook life, tears upon tears. Her daughters, who are completely innocent, of course, were in pieces. hundreds of mourners attending the funeral, including Fabio's beloved sisters, his family, the two sisters. They had two funerals, Caroline.
00:46:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
One was in Los Angeles and one was in Toronto.
00:46:06
Caroline
you
00:46:09
Caroline
Oh, that makes sense, though, because...
00:46:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes, he was beloved he was beloved. His family was in Toronto and his other family was in you know um Los Angeles. So the two sisters of
00:46:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio saw something, and that's how things began to unravel. The two sisters of Fabio at the funeral in Los Angeles saw, no, I guess that would have been the funeral in Toronto.
00:46:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
i don't know. One of the funerals. This is what they saw. They saw that Monica was talking with her racquetball instructor and her coach in a way that was a little too electric while trying awfully hard to act like they were strangers practically.
00:47:08
Caroline
To catch that moment.
00:47:08
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So, I mean, they were putting off vibes.
00:47:10
Caroline
Yeah.
00:47:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You know, there's these pheromones that just travel. I mean, you can tell.
00:47:14
Caroline
but let Yeah, let's be real. i As much as we try to hide things, and some people are really good, but for the most part, you can sense things when you catch the right moments, you catch the right interactions, you catch the right tone.
00:47:23
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Uh-huh. Uh-huh.
00:47:27
Caroline
There's definitely things to be caught, and you can catch them.
00:47:27
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah.
Evidence and Arrests
00:47:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
They were trying awfully hard to act like strangers. That's another thing you can detect.
00:47:36
Caroline
Mm-hmm.
00:47:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
ah Later on, when when ah Monica was asked about ah her lover, ah she pretended not to know his last name.
00:47:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Oh, he's my racquetball instructor. I don't know he his last name, but I think his first name is Robert. Well, I know his first name is Robert.
00:47:58
Caroline
This is why I just don't engage in fake acting.
00:47:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
ah Because you're in the bubble.
00:48:01
Caroline
Like, I just, it's like, how do you, how does your stomach not churn while you're doing that? Like, how do you not just like out laughing?
00:48:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You're in the bubble. You're in the bubble.
00:48:09
Caroline
I need to get a bubble. Yeah.
00:48:10
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
It was just a little too electric. Everybody, i don't know. Anyway, this is what happened.
00:48:17
Caroline
no
00:48:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
All it took was for these sisters to smell a rat.
00:48:24
Caroline
Yeah. Good for you, sisters.
00:48:26
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And they mentioned it because they didn't know who had killed their brother.
00:48:30
Caroline
Of course.
00:48:31
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Who came into the backyard? How did they know that no one would be home at that moment? How did they know that Fabio would be out on the veranda or whatever it's called, the pool pool side?
00:48:43
Caroline
Jack or whatever.
00:48:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And how did they know?
00:48:45
Caroline
Yeah.
00:48:46
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
and so they contacted the detectives. it's Probably nothing, but look into Robert Baker.
00:48:53
Caroline
Yeah, this is we're seeing this interaction. It's weird.
00:48:56
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Uh-huh.
00:48:56
Caroline
Like, why would she do that?
00:48:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Okay, so the police are like, okay, well, that's interesting. So what did they do? They did some surveillance. They did some phone data downloads.
00:49:12
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Man, that's got to be one hard shell bubble for you to be in to not know about phone data downloads and so forth.
00:49:21
Caroline
In 2017.
00:49:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, they did all of that. the The detectives did all of that. And they could see what had happened as each day data came in Meanwhile, Monica was posting all over social media every day.
00:49:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She would go out there and tell another great love story about her and Fabio and how much she loved him. and how much she needed him, and she grieved him. She can't believe it.
00:49:51
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I can't believe it. I still don't believe it, which to actual widows, that happens.
00:49:57
Caroline
Yeah. Yeah.
00:49:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Just, you know, i'm mean, you know, no, he's going to walk right through that door.
00:50:01
Caroline
yeah
00:50:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So that's where she was at. Meanwhile, speaking of data downloads, she was sending naked pictures of herself to Robert Davis's.
00:50:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So she might, we like to say Hansel and Gretel and the breadcrumbs. ah You know, this this lady is so into herself and this fantasy playground that she's on.
00:50:32
Caroline
yeah
00:50:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And why Robert Davis didn't end up murdering her to save his own life, I don't know.
00:50:45
Caroline
Oh, you mean Baker? Robert Baker? I don't know when we switched Davis.
00:50:47
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
yeah What did I say?
00:50:48
Caroline
You said Davis.
00:50:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I forget. I don't know why Baker. I don't know why I said Davis. Maybe I just don't want to be around these people.
00:50:56
Caroline
I know. Let's just...
00:50:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But she was she was sending naked pictures of herself to Robert Baker.
00:50:58
Caroline
that
00:51:03
Caroline
Oh my god, that's funny.
00:51:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Among other things, they followed Robert and Monica all around Not only, you know, they what they did was they went to like good restaurants where they knew the food would be good, but not popular, well-known restaurants on the strip.
00:51:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You know, the yeah are going
00:51:22
Caroline
Oh yeah, so they're sneaking around town.
00:51:26
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
they would go a little ways outside of Los Angeles. They'd go to dive bars in equal measure.
00:51:31
Caroline
Mm-hmm.
00:51:32
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
These were the places that Robert would recommend, I imagine. There were lots of sex and dark corners for the two of them. I mean, lots.
00:51:43
Caroline
Well, that is sort the premise of the idea initially.
00:51:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Many times every day. Yeah. Right.
00:51:48
Caroline
And like you said, yeah, I mean, he's probably got some tricks in his bag. So is that what they were doing the whole time prior to the murder or even including after the murder? They were doing this.
00:52:01
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I'm guessing that they were always clandestine because they were ah going to the most exclusive,
00:52:04
Caroline
Yeah.
00:52:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
ah what do you call those places, gyms?
00:52:15
Caroline
Oh yeah, yeah.
00:52:16
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And ah Robert was a racquetball guru in that gym.
00:52:22
Caroline
Yeah. Yeah.
00:52:24
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So, I mean, you know, he had probably been with more than just one or two stars.
00:52:30
Caroline
Like a dirty dancing scenario, but racquetball.
00:52:33
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes. But I mean, at 61, he might be slowing down just a little bit. I don't know. So police found things through video from Target on the day of the killing of Fabio Cimentelli.
00:52:48
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So here we see Monica driving her car from her home to Target, parking in a distant, obscure parking area. So you're going to go to Target and you're going to park like behind the garbage dumps.
00:53:04
Caroline
Yeah.
00:53:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, what, what?
00:53:06
Caroline
Yeah.
00:53:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But that's what she did. But then video shows that a man was entering her car at some point. Then this man exited the car after a time and Monica moved her car to regular parking and then went in.
00:53:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Okay, that's not suspicious, is it?
00:53:27
Caroline
Yeah, right. like
00:53:29
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Once inside, she slowly moved around with a cart. She was pushing the cart with one hand, and she was glued to her cell phone in the other hand.
00:53:42
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She called her daughter to remind her to go to her lesson and urged her to leave at that time that she was calling her.
00:53:54
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
from Target to tell her, you need to leave the house.
00:53:56
Caroline
Oh, Yeah. Yeah.
00:53:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I see you're still at the house. You need to leave the house or you'll be late for your lesson. She was logged into her home address surveillance system the whole time she was in Target, which showed the that showed the front area of the house where all the cameras were, but not the backyard patio and swimming area.
00:54:12
Caroline
ah wow
00:54:21
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So police are getting all of this this from ring phones around the neighborhood.
00:54:29
Caroline
Yep.
00:54:29
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Now that they suspect, and now they're pretty certain that it's her and Robert, this is what they're doing.
00:54:33
Caroline
Yeah.
00:54:36
Caroline
Yes, in the conspiracy.
00:54:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And they found that she had gone to Target. Okay, let's go get their video.
00:54:43
Caroline
God, I love this era of crime fighting.
00:54:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
and they could And they could see. They already had the phone records, but they could now see her.
00:54:49
Caroline
Yeah.
00:54:50
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She's pretend shopping. And she's logging in to their ah there's her home, her security system.
00:55:01
Caroline
Well, and making sure her one daughter leaves, the only daughter that's left in the home leaves. Like, i see what you mean now.
00:55:08
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And she knew exactly what time her other daughter was going to be coming to the house.
00:55:14
Caroline
Well, that's, I see what you mean now in that this is incredibly cruel and cold to do to your own kids. What are you doing? Just pawns or dancing around the murder that you're orchestrating?
00:55:21
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
00:55:24
Caroline
That's...
00:55:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She knew when the murder was going to take place because she knew when Fabio would get home and be out at the pool.
00:55:32
Caroline
Yeah.
00:55:33
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And she knew that her daughter needed to leave the house and she knew that her other daughter was going to be coming back home after the murder was committed.
00:55:42
Caroline
After.
00:55:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So this was planning down to gnat's eyebrow.
00:55:44
Caroline
Yeah.
00:55:47
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
00:55:47
Caroline
Oh, yeah. And the execution where you're monitoring to make it happen real time, like it's some kind of an event, you know, that you're orchestrating. Because it was. Yeah.
00:55:57
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So the killing itself was not on camera, but right after the time of the killing, she certainly could see the men coming to her house, two men on foot coming to the up the driveway.
00:56:08
Caroline
that's
00:56:12
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She could see that. Her other daughter, who was 16 at the time, was scheduled to get home just moments after the killing. And it was that daughter who found her father murdered, and she called the police.
00:56:30
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Police realized that Robert was not capable of taking down Fabio by himself. He was a kind of a wiry, smaller man. He was 61 years old.
00:56:43
Caroline
Yeah.
00:56:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was muscular, but Fabio. Fabio was a big Italian guy, worked on hair all the time, so he's got arms the size of Volkswagens.
00:56:56
Caroline
Yeah.
00:56:56
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, you know, he's a strong, younger man.
00:57:00
Caroline
Yeah.
00:57:01
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He was 49 years old when they killed him,
00:57:03
Caroline
So young.
00:57:06
Caroline
had at least another 20, 30 great years of his craft.
00:57:10
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
ah Probably more than that.
00:57:10
Caroline
Hands on. Yeah.
00:57:11
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, you know, he had an unlimited future. There's no question about it. Wish he had run for president. I'm sorry. Oh, he was born in Italy.
00:57:21
Caroline
anybody.
00:57:21
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Never mind. But anyway. Anyway. hit her daughter was set up to find her father dead, stabbed to death.
00:57:33
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So the police his are starting to think, okay, okay, okay, okay how are we going to catch this guy? Who's the weaker that'll cop a plea?
00:57:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, neither one of them is going to cop a plea. So was there a third person? Well, let's go look at Robert's phone history. and find And they did that, and they found that he was talking with somebody named Christopher, who flew into L.A.
00:58:03
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
and was picked up by Robert the day of the murder.
Convictions and Confessions
00:58:08
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Christopher Austin was arrested and brought back to L.A. for interrogation. They're thinking he might be a weak link.
00:58:16
Caroline
Yeah.
00:58:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He confessed. Immediately, they were right.
00:58:21
Caroline
Folded right away.
00:58:21
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And he agreed to testify against Robert and Monica.
00:58:26
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Christopher, in his confession, indicated that Robert was doing this murder because he was in love with Monica and that she wanted...
00:58:37
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She did not want to divorce Fabio. So he, Christopher, is telling the cops that Robert Baker is telling him, I've got to do this if I want to have this woman.
00:58:53
Caroline
Yeah.
00:58:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I've got to do this killing. She won't divorce him. So I've got to do this killing. You've got to help me. Remember those times that I helped you? You've got to help me.
00:59:03
Caroline
Yeah.
00:59:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So Robert was arrested and promptly confessed. I mean, they told him, we've got Christopher. He's told us all about it.
00:59:13
Caroline
Yeah.
00:59:15
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So he promptly confessed. Robert did. He adamantly...
00:59:17
Caroline
Yeah, I mean, none these guys were career criminals. I don't even think they were trying to be.
00:59:22
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah. He had maintained, Robert had maintained... ah his ah confession that he said Monica had no participation in the murder.
00:59:36
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
This was the only way I could have her. I wanted her. But she had nothing to do with it. So now police could bring Christopher Austin to the Bar of Justice, Robert Baker to the Bar of Justice,
00:59:42
Caroline
who
00:59:54
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And both, ah well, Robert got like ah got life without parole. And Christopher, for copying his plea and leading to the real killers or the other killers, ah got 16 years in a plea agreement. So I'm happy about that.
01:00:14
Caroline
Yeah, that all sounds really quite reasonable.
01:00:18
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I think he was more stupid or dumb or, you know, just not...
01:00:21
Caroline
Desperate, whatever.
01:00:23
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Didn't know how to tell Robert to go, you know, pound sand.
01:00:24
Caroline
yeah
01:00:27
Caroline
Right.
01:00:27
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
He just did not know how to do that. He thought, well, I'll pay him back for all he's done for me.
01:00:33
Caroline
And then I'll just forget it ever happened.
01:00:35
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah, well, people like Robert are constantly pink paying people off in advance. It's like the organized crime people do.
01:00:42
Caroline
yeah
01:00:43
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And, you know, a lot of...
01:00:43
Caroline
put him in his pocket.
01:00:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I mean, he may have been in... in organized crime when he was in the porn business.
01:00:51
Caroline
yeah
01:00:51
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
I don't think the mafia has any kind of interest in racquetball. I could be wrong.
01:00:56
Caroline
I mean, it might be ah like a part of something.
01:00:57
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But I...
01:01:00
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
01:01:01
Caroline
Maybe the racquetball club is like a front. I don't know.
01:01:04
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So after all of that, mean, you know the all of these clues, it took a long time to to get this going. And then it took a long time to do the the lawyer work, to make a plea for um Christopher, and then to ah have a jury decide what's the punishment going to be for Robert, or whatever their process was.
01:01:24
Caroline
Wow.
01:01:30
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
It took seven years to bring the murder trial for Monica Cimentelli. She was convicted in April 2025, just few weeks ago.
01:01:40
Caroline
Wow.
01:01:42
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
just a few weeks ago
01:01:43
Caroline
Yeah, that's crazy.
01:01:45
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Well, actually, that's just like two weeks ago. I think it was two weeks ago. Anyway, three weeks ago. At the time of this ah podcast coming out, it's been a couple months, but we're recording in May for our June recordings, and um she she's freshly minted.
01:01:56
Caroline
yeah
01:02:07
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She has not been sentenced yet. ah I believe she'll get Life Without Parole.
01:02:14
Caroline
Oh, yeah. I mean, if you're looking at the evidence and yeah. Oh, yeah.
01:02:19
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Now, Monica's daughters believe to this day in their mother's innocence. They say that Robert is telling the truth, that he did it all on his own.
01:02:33
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But, I mean, police have all the evidence to convict her, and they convicted her.
01:02:37
Caroline
Yeah. And not only that, you're not even going to discuss with your mother that she was having an affair that brought danger into the family like that. You don't want to start somewhere with some form of a problem.
01:02:46
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
No, they just can't.
01:02:47
Caroline
She didn't bring nothing.
01:02:49
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
They just can't go there. They don't want to be daughters of a killer.
01:02:52
Caroline
Right. I don't. Yeah, that makes sense.
01:02:55
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
But the evidence the day of the murder and after the murder, her double life before and after the murder, I mean, you know, she was running this scam of trying to get the insurance money and ah they the insurance people would not pay her because because of the murder part.
01:03:10
Caroline
Because of the murder. Yeah.
01:03:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
so So the jury convicted her. She'll be sentenced in the next few weeks. I believe now as we get to the end of this story, I believe that Monica Simentelli was intoxicated with herself.
01:03:28
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She was addicted to her sexual partner. ah She was addicted to Fabio Simentelli's wife role that she played.
01:03:37
Caroline
yeah
01:03:38
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She didn't want to give that up.
01:03:40
Caroline
For sure. Yeah.
01:03:40
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
After his death, she enjoyed the role for a short period of time as grieving widow of a beloved icon in both Los Angeles and Toronto. She didn't like it that he didn't receive any wealth, that she didn't receive any wealth from the death of Fabio.
01:03:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
but Again, she was blocked from that because of the murder part. So, I mean, she had the house.
01:04:05
Caroline
yeah
01:04:06
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
She had his bank account. Wella paid her
01:04:14
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Fabio's salary while she was trying to get the life insurance. They didn't know she had killed Fabio.
01:04:20
Caroline
wow They just knew how much they loved they had loved.
01:04:24
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Oh, yeah, they felt like, you know, you're family.
01:04:24
Caroline
Yeah. Yeah, for sure.
01:04:27
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
You are family. Yeah.
01:04:29
Caroline
Well, good on Wella. that I mean, of course, never feel bad about behaving in ways that are totally in line with your value system.
01:04:30
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yeah.
01:04:35
Caroline
Even if later you find out that was an unworthy act on the behalf of the recipient, don't I mean, just know that you're still in line with your values.
01:04:35
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
01:04:44
Caroline
Go Wella.
01:04:46
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
right So the family is fragmented now, Caroline.
01:04:52
Caroline
Yeah. Oh no.
01:04:52
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
With Luigi, now this is the son from the first marriage of ah Fabio.
01:04:56
Caroline
yeah
01:04:59
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
ah He believes in the guilt of Monica While Jessica and Marilla believe in their mother's innocence. So now the family split. So Monica has destroyed Fabio and everything that meant anything to him, his family.
01:05:19
Caroline
You're right. Oh, God. That was the only thing i think that meant anything. I genuinely think this man, the the money wasn't extra.
01:05:23
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Absolutely. he he
01:05:25
Caroline
He didn't even see it.
01:05:25
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
i saw an interview with him.
01:05:26
Caroline
Oh,
01:05:27
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
i saw an interview with him where somebody said, what is your legacy? And he said, well, if I have to think about my legacy right now, i guess I will. family.
01:05:39
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
my ah
01:05:41
Caroline
I love that.
01:05:42
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
he That was instant.
01:05:44
Caroline
Yeah.
01:05:44
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And then he said, and all the relationships that have come my way, that I've built with people and the teaching that I do and the young people.
01:05:44
Caroline
Yeah.
01:05:49
Caroline
Yeah.
01:05:54
Caroline
Yeah.
01:05:56
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And, you know, he just kind of went off. He never once said money, fame, privilege, nothing.
01:06:01
Caroline
Right. Well, and Harvard did that study. We know for a fact that relationships are integral to longevity and ah good long
Conclusion and Reflection
01:06:12
Caroline
life health.
01:06:12
Caroline
I mean, that we know it now.
01:06:13
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Yes.
01:06:14
Caroline
So, ah wow.
01:06:15
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Right.
01:06:15
Caroline
Oh, Fabio.
01:06:19
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So our podcast covers murders in a family, Caroline, or family killer in your family, but the story of the survivors in all of our stories, ah these families get just blown to bits.
01:06:35
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Every survivor deals in isolation. It's only the very lucky few can remain intact. in in their family, in which, you know, all are suffering together, talking about healing. healing That doesn't normally happen.
01:06:52
Caroline
Yeah.
01:06:53
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
That does not normally happen. Usually there's a split.
01:06:57
Caroline
For sure. Well, you have to walk through it all the time.
01:06:58
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And it's just...
01:07:00
Caroline
It's hard, i imagine.
01:07:01
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
It's very, very difficult. So that's the story of what happened to one hell of a guy and the imprisonment of two cold-blooded killers.
01:07:15
Caroline
wow
01:07:17
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
So our research is solely based on public documents, including legal documents, articles, and books about our subject. Episodes are aired every other week.
01:07:28
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
Please tell your friends to join us and give us a review and subscribe. This helps new listeners find us. Thank you for joining us, listeners. We really appreciate you.
01:07:40
Andy, Bridget and Caroline
And one other thing, don't forget to live and let live. So goodbye for now, Caroline.
01:07:48
Caroline
Bye-bye. bye